Hot Yoga – I’ve always wanted to get properly into yoga and in particular hot yoga but for one reason or another I’ve always more dabbled than actually gotten fully engaged. I’ve loved the idea for so long of finding my centre through active meditation while also improving my physical health. I noted earlier this year the mental benefits of being able to switch off from the stresses of work and life while going through my most recent dabbling phase but for long term the times never seemed to really suit and it became more hassle than it was worth. They also have zero parking in the studio I went to which needed additional and annoying planning. Anyway a recent change of apartment for me allowed me to tactically position my life 100 metres from the gym and 800 metres from the Hot Yoga studio. This was no coincidence boys Make things easy and you’ll do it. And I have done it! I should mention that an almost 4 month lay off with a back injury also meant hot yoga was a no brainier for improved recovery as I’m working my way back! I’ve embraced it, and I can’t see myself letting it go any time soon! The past 6 or so weeks I’ve gone almost solidly every Wednesday and Saturday, it’s strangely addictive. Don’t get me wrong by what I’m about to say next, it certainly is a tough workout setting you back around 500-600 calories easily within the hour but I’m not there for a physical workout. I’m there for me. And only me! I recently noticed that I have zero idea who’s been coming and going to that class! Aside from the instructor I’ve no idea, the reason? I’ve been practicing with my eyes closed more and more, only opening to check form or to check the instructors form and how I should be doing it. It’s about me and centring me on the now. If you’re new:

Bring water, lots of water

Wear comfortable clothes

Stay away from the heaters, centre of the room or near the door (you get a small breeze if you’re lucky) are best

Bring an open mind and a willingness to improve yourself.

For me, it remains one of two places in my life where I feel free!

A book I’m reading…

The 4-Hour Work Week by Tim Ferris – if you’ve been following me awhile you’ll already know that I’m a big fan of Tims Blog and Podcast. Bought his book a few weeks back and have been saving it until I had a real chance to sit down and enjoy it. Well I brought it with me on a work trip to Milan this week and it certainly did not disappoint. I’m a slow reader in general, I like to let me mind drift on thought provoking topics but I can not put this book down. I fully expect it will change my life. I’ll report back in a few weeks…

It’s after getting frickin’ cold lads, and I like to get outdoors! Over the last couple of weeks I’ve skipped a few outdoorsy type things that I wanted to do because I couldn’t find my jacket. Walking to the gym in the morning was also a pain due to the cold. Honestly it was becoming easier and easier to stay in bed. Well long story short I bought myself a lovely new Trespass jacket. It’s warm, wind proof and rain proof. I’ve removed a ready made excuse from my life, hurray!! Also Trespass have a sale at the moment for all your outdoorsy needs:

No time for podcasts this week as I’ve been up the walls with work but instead I’ve managed to well and truly get my Christmas buzz on with the recent return of Christmas FM. In the car to and from work and just in case you’re trying to get away from Christmas you big humbug you, there is also an app which gives you 24 hour coverage. Get on it and get your Christmas on f**kers

Frequencies, Live listening and App available here on the Christmas FM Website:Christmas FM

A quote I’m thinking about…

“Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it’s time to pause and reflect” – Mark Twain

Time to pause and reflect on a number of items this week!

Eat Right, Train Hard, Enjoy Life, Have a Top Weekend!

FacelessFitness
FacelessFitGuy

]]>https://facelessfitness.com/2017/12/08/faceless-friday-08-12-17/feed/0img_2243facelessfitguyimg_2247img_2248img_2243Make Your Excuses Laterhttps://facelessfitness.com/2017/12/06/make-your-excuses-later/
https://facelessfitness.com/2017/12/06/make-your-excuses-later/#respondWed, 06 Dec 2017 20:22:34 +0000http://facelessfitness.com/?p=1045Continue reading →]]>Excuses, everyone’s got one! But how often do you make your excuses before you fail? As an Irish person it’s difficult to put yourself out there. Open confidence is not something that’s respected by the majority of Irish people. “What a prick” attitude is common towards people that want to get on in life in an open confident way. In contrast, quiet confidence is well respected. Being the guy who said nothing about it and achieved something big is held in far higher esteem than being the guy who said he was going to do it and did it! Conor McGregor confidence appears to be changing this but dare I say it, only in Dublin

Another big factor is how Irish people have a tendency to pigeonhole people into a certain role, he’s the hurler, she’s the academic, he’s into X, she’s into Y. You get known for things so easily and they stick. Even from your own parents; in my case I think I’m pigeonholed as the nerd, the academic who does something techy related. Can’t play sport as well as my siblings, can’t do mechanics or anything manual, can’t do anything except that job thing…

Despite the perception I have brought more cups into the house (as the team captain in multiple codes) than any of my siblings and definitely more county medals, though I see some challenges to this over Christmas. And extremely recently, my father spat out his soup at the thought of me towing a car (which I did), despite my inability for anything manual or mechanic I’ve previously received awards for engineering – the fucking best engineer in the school Anyway back to the point, when you’re known for something, it can become more difficult to put yourself out there as something else.

This pigeonholing, coupled with the quiet approach attitude leads to an attitude of making excuses first. People play everything down in case of failure even to the point of making sure others know the excuses for why you lost before you even lost. The alternative is scary at first –

“I’m going to win this thing, fuck you”.

It’s not a popular attitude if you express it outward but who actually really does it? At times it’s for sure what you say inside but outside you say something like

“Na not sure now today, X is good, and my prep wasn’t exactly great but hopefully I will”

To go to a pre match/event dressing room for a minute, have you ever said in your mind the things you say to people that ask?

No, I know which one of the above phrases I say to myself over and over!

You have to believe you can win, fully believe it. When you let an excuse into your mind before the event you are setting yourself to fail!

Make your excuses later, look back on failure (or victory) with an open mind, look at what you could do differently and improve. When you blame everything on a pre-defined excuse, you miss other things that you did wrong and it takes you much much longer to learn and improve!

Actually going to double this up as I got both for under €20 in none other than Mr. Price. Anyhoo for starters every single person should own a whiteboard which you hang in your room or somewhere extremely visible in your house. For me thoughts are only thoughts until you write them down! Writing them in a diary or book is ok but it’s hidden away, instead putting in out there and visible, if only to yourself, is a power shift in how you look at things you think about! Write anything, leave it awhile and see how you feel, see what grows! I like it in my bedroom as I can reflect before sleep and often in the morning something new comes. Write your goal, look at it everyday, it makes early morning training much much easier, believe me.

The second item is a calendar with enough space to write notes for everyday, use it to plan your days, weeks and months leading to that goal.

Whiteboard – €7.99 Mr. Price
Calendar – €6.99 Mr Price

Here are mine (Getting ready for 2018)!

A Podcast episode I’m listening to…

The ‘Strength and Scotch’ podcast…straight off the bat, what a concept, all these guys do is talk about different scotches and workout techniques! Fucking awesome! I’m new to listening to these guys but the below episode speaks about the optimal rep range for building mass. At 30 minutes long it’s a pretty low commitment, I’ll definitely be checking out more of these guys

ZMA – awesome product, helps to promote restful sleep and boost testosterone levels. Worrying fact for men is that testosterone levels have reduced by 1% every year since the 1950’s with the UK and Ireland overall having much reduced levels. If you think your granddad had more pep in his step, he sure fucking did. But in all seriousness stress related to the pace of lives these days also is a factor, being constantly logged on, being constantly tired at the pace of life is something we all need to control. ZMA helps to give you restful sleep when you get the opportunity. It doesn’t give you more sleep or extra energy when you wake but it does help to give you a better quality sleep. It’s two main ingredients, Zinc and Magnesium have well proven health benefits particularly for men, you can see this for yourself without much googling! My brand is myProtein but ZMA pretty much is what it is from any supplier!

Notable side effects for me:
– Waking up with drool on the pillow
– Crazy fucking dreams
– Massive morning hard on

A general product I’m using…

I used to be a tough guy, but hey it’s gotten cold recently, and I’m still a tough guy but I had to purchase some chap! My lips done got themselves chapped. I actually went to buy the toughest guy chap I could find, got one with a picture of a guy with a beard on it because you know I’m a tough guy…but it was useless. Then I thought to myself, you know who knows about lip products…women, they got glosses and sticks and balms. So I bought caramex, problem solved!!!

A quote I’m thinking about…

“Nobody gives it to you, you’ve got to take it”

This line actually comes from the opening speech in the movie ‘The Departed’, The context is maybe somewhat different in the movie but the quote itself is something which I firmly believe. Nobody is going to give you any of the things that you really want, instead work hard to get yourself into position and when the time is right YOU have to take it!

Reverse Pull down on the Diverging Lat Pull Down machine – the diverging movement when you flip this exercise around really focuses the attention on the Rhomboid major and lower trap muscle. Aim for your the bottom of the movement to have your hands ending just behind and below your ears! Use lower weight here to ensure you focus on the above mucles, otherwise you will engage the arms much more.

What I’m listening to…

I’ve been a big fan of Tim Ferris’ blog for quite some time but just this week listened to one of his top 10 all time Podcasts featuring Charles Poliquin. What an amazing character, and what an amazing 2 hours or so of content. They speak at length about strength training, what exercises you should forget about, what supplements you should be taking for health benefits, meat eating versus vegan for training, where to go to find medical information…..It really is an amazing listen.

I usually listen to my podcasts while working out but this was one I just couldn’t stop listening to after my session finished. So many tips is here, for sure check it out!!

Apple Cider Vinegar – Perhaps not a supplement in the mass production protein revolution sense of the word but definitely is something you should check out for it’s health benefits and something which you will not get for your day to day nutrition. Benefits include:

I take 30ml’s every morning on an empty stomach. Usually add in some Aloe Vera juice also!

What I’m watching…

It’s all about the Peaky Blinders this week. Second episode of the new series was on Wednesday night and what an episode! For anyone that hasn’t yet seen it, the show is set in Birmingham after world war I and follows the notorious antics of the Peaky Blinders gang led by Tommy Shelby. I recently read that although the gang was real some key details have been switched, for one the gang operated in the late 1800’s, not in the 1920’s and its historically very unlikely that they had razor blades sown into their caps…regardless it is one excellent show which I would definitely recommend.

If you hurry you can catch up on series 1 & 2 on Netflix and stream (looks sideways), the 3rd series over the weekend. Next episode is Wednesday at 9.00 on BBC2.

A quote I’m thinking about…

“When you want to succeed, as bad as you want to breathe, then you’ll be successful”

It’s a phrase that I come back to time and time again when looking for motivation in my own life.

Eat right, Train hard, Enjoy life, Have a top weekend!

FacelessFitGuy
FacelessFitness

]]>https://facelessfitness.com/2017/11/25/faceless-friday-24-11-17/feed/0facelessfitguyThe mindset shift to morning weight training…https://facelessfitness.com/2016/10/15/the-mindset-shift-to-morning-weight-training/
https://facelessfitness.com/2016/10/15/the-mindset-shift-to-morning-weight-training/#respondSat, 15 Oct 2016 11:00:38 +0000http://facelessfitness.com/?p=999Continue reading →]]>For the longest time I convinced myself that morning weight training wasn’t for me, sure running or walking in the morning sets you up for the day but weight training…No Way! It just doesn’t suit my body. It makes me feel ill. I can’t push myself as hard. I’m too tired to perform mentally at work later in the day. All of these were legitimate excuses that I kept to keep me out of morning weight training where at all possible. All of this based on some poor morning performances I had previously resulting in some or all of the above on the one day through lack of preparation.

Roll forward to my latest programme, and I just cannot get enough of the morning training. I feel absolutely great and here’s why:

1) The sense that you’re getting ahead – Every morning that I get up early and get out for 6am to start my 30-40 minute journey to the gym, I get the genuine feeling that I’m getting ahead of those in bed. While they sleep I’ll get ahead. The fact that I’m up and you’re not already means that I am ahead, I have more hours in my active day to get to the goals I want to achieve. As winter sets in and it gets colder and wetter and harder to make these morning sessions I’ll remember the three words that I say every morning to push me on:

“While they sleep…”

2) The sense that you own the city – Have you ever walked around your city at 6am? Every city has a different culture, but at 6am Dublin sleeps. The streets are quiet, very few people around. It’s mainly delivery people completing their early runs. The people you do meet are usually half asleep and in themselves quiet. And then there’s me – Fuelled, Focused & Ready. While all of these other people are tired from yesterday or worried about what they need to do today, I’ve gone to bed knowing that I’m going to emerge with a sole focus of smashing my workout. I travel to my workout with my hood up, inside that hood is my zone. The world is outside, the world is irrelevant. I’m focused and I feel like I own this f**kin’ city. I don’t use my phone much traveling to the gym, sure on public transport I’ll check insta, or fb, or whatever. But when I’m walking I take it all in. This is the city, these are my streets, I walk with pride and focus.

“The city’s at peace and so am I”

3) The Nutrition mind-set shift – training in the morning changes the entire mind-set of how I approach my diet. When you train in the evening it’s so easy to get restless with your diet during the day. The sense that you can work things off later in the gym in common place…hmmm I’ll just have this chocolate bar and I can work it off later in the gym. Hmmm I’ll just have this pack of crisps I’ll work it off later in the gym. Hmmm I’ll just have a hot chicken roll with mayo and taco sauce and a large bag of jellies with a coke for lunch because you guessed it I’ll work it off later in the gym. By the way, I would mangle that lunch right now! When we train later in the day it’s easy to pre-reward ourselves for what we are going to do but it’s a habit that will inevitably hold us back. By training in the morning I find that I don’t suffer this problem. Instead there is a much stronger sense the I’ve done the hard work in the morning, why f**k it up now!”.
As a result of training six days this feeling repeats over and over and it’s becoming really easy to keep on track. Seriously:

“You’ve done the hard work in the morning, why f**k it up now!”

4) The time is your own – Touching back to point 1 slightly, everyone is generally asleep. The amount of people or institutions that are demanding your time at 6 am is greatly reduced in most cases when compared to the evening time. When you’re in the middle of a structured programme you want to hit the gym for the sessions that you’ve planned when you’ve planned to do them. However training in the evening will never 100% guarantee this. Working late, family commitments, social commitments, event nights etc. Training in the evening in a busy schedule makes life difficult. You create a split between the gym and other elements of your life and it’s hard to balance both. Gym sessions get shorter or are missed completely and you end you get cranky at those around you or yourself for not being better prepared. Training in the morning flips this on its head, external factors are limited and you take the responsibility on yourself. It’s you and your goals versus extra time sleeping.

“It’s you and your goals versus extra time sleeping”

FacelessFitness
FacelessFitGuy

]]>https://facelessfitness.com/2016/10/15/the-mindset-shift-to-morning-weight-training/feed/0facelessfitguyGym Tips #6 – Record, Review, Record…The importance of gym noteshttps://facelessfitness.com/2016/10/08/gym-tips-6-record-review-record-the-importance-of-gym-notes/
https://facelessfitness.com/2016/10/08/gym-tips-6-record-review-record-the-importance-of-gym-notes/#commentsSat, 08 Oct 2016 10:01:34 +0000http://facelessfitness.com/?p=952Continue reading →]]>Notepads come in all shapes and sizes, from little detective flip pads to A4 diaries. Over the last few years I’ve used both and a range in between. For the record I’ve settled on the most practical A5 size with ring flip binder and a plastic cover. The hardback is better and more durable but I’ve always felt like a bit of a schoolboy writing my notes into a proper book, a bit too formal for a busy gym. The ring bind allows you to keep the size A5 by folding the pages around. The plastic cover is a lesson you will learn through spillage, my god I’ve spilled a lot of crap on my gym book, that coupled with the fact it’s usually in my gym bag makes the plastic essential.

All of this probably sounds a bit mad, but you should be proud of your gym book. If used correctly it will be the key to your success!

There are a number of mobile apps out there these days which allow you to track your progress in terms of reps, weights and comments and if you’re a tech guy or girl by all means go ahead. For a person that’s quite heavily involved in new technology in their career, I’m painfully old school when it comes to certain things and having a note book just happens to be one of them!

Anyway regardless of where you record your progress the key piece for me is that it’s not at all about the numbers. If you were to observe me in the gym you would see me writing in my notebook after every single set without fail. If you were a casual observer you would think:

“Wow that guys a f**kin lunatic for writing in his book every 2 mins, does he have the memory of a fish or what’s his f**kin problem…pfffft notepad w**ker”

The key piece is not the recording of the reps or the weight but how I feel or how the set went after every single set. It’s notes to myself so that next time I go to workout the same body part I know what I need to do. Whether you’re programme is 6/8/10/12 weeks the amount of times you work out each body part will prob be between 1-2 times the number of weeks of you’re programme. For example on an 8 week programme you will usually work out each body part between 8 and 16 times during the 8 weeks (Usually closer to 8!) This means that you really don’t get that many opportunities to in the gym to make the weights count. Smashing every workout is not the goal. Smashing every set is! I write in my notepad the things I need to to make sure next time I work the same exercise I know exactly what I need to do. For me it’s the best way to keep pushing myself. Looking back at my notes from last week I can see that I dumbbell pressed the 47.5 Kg’s for 6 reps to finish my first exercise. Awesome 47.5’s are pretty big particularly without a spotter but then right beside I see in big capitals “UP WEIGHT”. This means that after I finishing last week I was not maxed out, I could have lifted more, it’s a reminder that next time out I need to up that weight…50’s for fun!!some of my more common phrases:

“UP WEIGHT” – higher top weight next time out
“UP START WEIGHT” – Top set was good but first set needs to start higher
“FORM OFF LOWER WEIGHT” – the weight is too heavy which is affecting my form
“GOOD” – Nice set, keep it same next time out
“SORE…..” – lower back, elbow, shoulder – anything which affects the outcome of the exercise
“F**kin smashed” – Perfect, well done

If I didn’t have those notes, I wouldn’t push myself as hard because it’s easy to forget what you did and where you could have done more.

]]>https://facelessfitness.com/2016/10/08/gym-tips-6-record-review-record-the-importance-of-gym-notes/feed/1imagefacelessfitguyWearing nothing at all…https://facelessfitness.com/2016/10/01/wearing-nothing-at-all/
https://facelessfitness.com/2016/10/01/wearing-nothing-at-all/#respondSat, 01 Oct 2016 12:11:44 +0000http://facelessfitness.com/?p=926Continue reading →]]>There’s a worrying trend becoming more and more popular in the capital and all that I can think of is Ned Flanders – “Feels like I’m wearing nothing at all”

Stupid sexy Flanders! I’m conflicted on the idea of Leggings and nothing but leggings on my male gym goers. Time and a place lads. Time for leggings: Saturday night when you’re hitting the town with you’re 5 inch heels. Time not for leggings: Training arms on a saturday morning for said night out!

I joke!

There is solid science for the use of compression leggings for a range of physical activities but attempting to look the s**t is def not one of them. For me there seems to be a bit of a gender shift in terms of gym self image. The old school man who comes to the gym looking like a guy that fell out of the bed and into the gym no matter what time of the day is in decline. This man is easily identified by the same tshirt he wears day in day out without real Rotation, his hair has no trend other than different variations of messy. Now you got guys with perfect hair, the kinda that’s taking time to blow dry, worried more about the gym trends than lifting heavy. Can you look good n lift heavy absolutely…but is there needless pressure on guys to look good at a time of the day that should be focused on stress free me time! While I see this as negative, the shift in the female space is so much more positive, women seem to be much more focused on training than hair and make up. Which is good! Strangely I think cross fit has really driven this into the mass gym market! But did they bring the male leggings too…

Male or Female you really shouldn’t care, please don’t! Get in and do what you gotta do…mess n all! You’re there to improve, save the style for Friday n Saturday nights!

Anyway back to my real leggings issue. I, due to my faceless nature, usually train alone. As such from time to time when going heavy I require a spotter. My pool of spotters that I can choose from is in serious decline as at all cost you want to avoid ballsface when you’re on the bar. When it comes to shorts, my stance is like a convent schools principal “if it’s not to knee don’t spot for me”

Lets just focus on lifting y’all!

FacelessFitGuy

FacelessFitness

]]>https://facelessfitness.com/2016/10/01/wearing-nothing-at-all/feed/0img_4361facelessfitguyimg_4361Success – 5 thoughts and why you should be a sweet potatohttps://facelessfitness.com/2016/07/24/success-5-thoughts-and-why-you-should-be-a-sweet-potato/
https://facelessfitness.com/2016/07/24/success-5-thoughts-and-why-you-should-be-a-sweet-potato/#commentsSun, 24 Jul 2016 10:00:48 +0000http://facelessfitness.com/?p=883Continue reading →]]>The New Zealand modern day rugby teams mantra is “No D**kheads” and for me it’s so simple and perfect. Don’t be a d**khead. Greater emphasis is placed on strength of character rather than raw ability. Many exceptionally talented young New Zealanders have been passed over for the international team due to how they conduct themselves. Above all a responsibility to represent the jersey to the best of your ability without compromising the team values. Read Legacy by James Kerr, it’s amazing.

For me being successful is everything. As you grow your measure for success must also, if 5 years when I was leaving college someone told me I would be in the career position I am now I couldn’t have imagined it. My Salary has increased 8 times in the last 5 years and only last week I requested a 9th as my company attempt to make me permanent 13 months ahead of schedule – I’ve made an impact. But is any of that success? No. Money is money and how much you have means nothing to me. Imagine you have a school reunion tomorrow with all of your old class mates, friends, enemies, the rest. When asked what have you being doing with yourself will the first line be: well in 2016 I’ve made €X how about you? I really hope not. But what would you say? What are the points you want to make about yourself to people to showcase your success. If you’re fresh out and you can’t answer that, it’s time to act, time to be a success!

“The Sweet Potato does not need to tell you how sweet it is” – Legacy James Kerr

Now I’m not saying be a sweet potato but what a humble b*****d of a vegetable.

Beit life or training I like to remember the following:

1) Know Thyself – the Ancient Greek aphorism “Gnothi Seauton”. The proverb applies to those whose boasts exceed what they are. It is a warning to pay no attention to the opinions of the multitude. It’s easy to get caught up in histeria and think you are better than you are, equally it’s easy to get caught up in negativity and think worse than you are. Pay no attention to the opinions of others and instead use honest self assessment to know yourself better than anyone else can. Why do you go to the gym? 9/10 people will say to get/keep fit. But would you go as much if there was no instagram or snapchat, would you go if you had no holidays coming up, would you go if there were no competitions, would you go if it was just you and would only ever be you in your basement? There’s nothing wrong with saying no to any of those questions, your still in the gym getting fit and healthy which is the main thing but have you ever really questioned yourself do you really know why you do anything! You’ve got to know yourself why you do it. Know yourself better than anyone else and you will be successful, don’t float through life never knowing you. Although I’ve many reasons for being in the gym (as most of us do), I know myself enough to know why the answer to all of those questions is and always will be Yes. I go to the gym because when your pressing two 55Kg Dumbbells your mind is so focused it can’t think about anything else, for those few seconds I’m free.

2) Winners Win – successful people win. I speak a lot to people about winning because it’s so misunderstood. The bit people fail to comprehend is that being the best and being a winner are two very different things. How many times in sport do we see the better team losing to a grittier more determined less skilled team. It’s frequent, some people use the “Form is temporary, class is permanent” phrase. I don’t, it’s an excuse for the best team on paper underperforming. Winning is everything, you do what you need to to win, winners adapt, losers hold on to excuses. Remember No D**kheads, don’t be a cheat. Can you win everything all of the time, no. But while you’re in the mix remember winners win. I’ve never aimed to be the best, but I’ve developed a habit of winning.

3) Start Again – this is another legacy quote which comes from Richie McCaw. Its humbling, no matter what you have done in life each day you start again. Everything has a short memory, anything you’ve done, anything you’ve achieved, after a game is over, a competition is over, season etc. It’s done and you start again from nothing. Remember these two words and you will be a success. Yesterday is gone, it’s always today moving forward.

4) Candles – your candle does not burn less bright by lighting others. Share your knowledge with anyone that wants it. Be friendly and approachable in life. Everybody whether in the gym or in life is at a different stage, help those below you and open your mind to those above you. Be a leader and a friend. If in a position of power delegate and help your team to expand, the key to being a great leader is breaking the forced dependence on you. Be a person people want to follow, not a person that forces people to follow.

5) Small Days – Success is achieved on the small days, most days are small. It’s your weekly grind. Big days if you’re lucky enough to get them come once or twice a year. It’s the competition day, it’s championship, it’s the interview, it’s the sales pitch, it’s your chance to kick to the next level. Big days make you nervous, you’re outside your comfort zone but you know your here for a reason, you’re the best but you can choke even after doing everything right. See winners above. However most people don’t get themselves into that position because they’ve skipped the small days. small days are are the insignificant days that you can never account for it your life, what did you do on May 15th? April 4th? June 27th? July 19th? I don’t know what I did on any of those days, just regular days, small days. To be successful you need to use these small days wisely to build towards your goal, learn something everyday, the things you learn now are setting you up for big days you don’t even know you want yet. Expand every aspect of your life!

Hope you enjoyed and remember be a sweet potato!

FacelessFitGuy

FaceslessFitness

]]>https://facelessfitness.com/2016/07/24/success-5-thoughts-and-why-you-should-be-a-sweet-potato/feed/1imagefacelessfitguyFacelessFitness.com Gym Tips #5 -Basic Gyms and Alternative Exerciseshttps://facelessfitness.com/2016/05/08/facelessfitness-com-gym-tips-5-basic-gyms-and-alternative-exercises/
https://facelessfitness.com/2016/05/08/facelessfitness-com-gym-tips-5-basic-gyms-and-alternative-exercises/#commentsSun, 08 May 2016 12:58:36 +0000http://facelessfitness.com/?p=824Continue reading →]]>When you are serious about training the first thing you need to do is find a good well equipped gym. Golds has certainly set the standard in terms of size and equipment, but Ireland and UK have really stepped things now up over the last number of years. Strength and Fitness, FlyeFit, Raw, Ben Dunne, and Dennehys in Cork (to name but a few) have really stepped up their game in terms of service to their customers. The range of equipment in these gyms really is impressive and it’s difficult to do a bad session with so much at your disposal. I can only recommend what I know and if you are serious about lifting check out each of these on a free trial and decide what’s best for you (I have a favourite and I love it!).

The above gyms have everything you could ever need, however if you train in smaller/busier gym you don’t always get the opportunity to do everything you want to do. Also if you’re like me and sometimes use a smaller back up gym or find yourself using a hotel gym you will typically notice the following standard pieces of equipment could be missing:

So here is my list of the most effective exercises by body part which should get you through any small gym session (Also perfect alternatives for busy days)

ChestDumbbell Incline Fly* – really effective with higher reps at lower weightDumbbell Press* – Again high reps may be the only option if the Dumbbells are smallPush Up – always a great exerciseChest Press/Fly* – if machines available use it, most small gyms usually stock these machines as an alternative to benches

Back – In my opinion one of the main neglected areas of smaller gymsBent over double arm Dumbell row – really effective back exercise at lower weight, can alternate between neutral and hammer gripsSingle arm dumbbell row – Should be a corner stone of any back isolation workoutSingle arm Machine Row using chest press – You may not be lucky enough to have a machine row but if you have a chest press you can use a variation to hit your back. Stand in a semi squat position facing the chest press and using one arm at a time pull the handle towards yourself in a row motion – extremely effective when you get used to itPullDown* – If you have it use it, alternate grips as much as possible if relying on this as your core back builder

TricepsTriceps Dips – use a stepper machine or treadmill to give you the hand rails to do full dipsTriangle Push Ups – bring your hands together forming a triangle between your thumbs and index fingers, really focuses the triceps and pushing chest secondaryOverhead Dumbbell Extension* – Extend the dumbbell from the back of your neck over your headDumbbell Kick backs – really nice for hitting the outer head of the triceps

BicepsDumbbell Concentration Curl – really good at lower weight due to the isolationHammer Curls* – Good variation which also hits the forearmIncline seated Dumbbell Curl – again great to really isolate the biceps and stop any help from surrounding musclesDumbbell 21’s – 7 full reps, 7 half reps lower half of movement, 7 half reps upper half of movement

AbsPlank/Side Plank/Bridge – core poses that can be done anywhereFull Sit Up – Absolute full extension, no half movement Leg up – hits the lower half better than anything unless you can do hanging raises. If you have a bench do it with your lower half off of the bench to getter a better range of motionFloor Crunch – excellent for the upper abs (the ones you’ll see first)

LegsSquats – free squats or if available use kettle bells or DumbbellsLunge Walk – Free lunges or enhance with DumbbellsSplit Squat – use bench to elevate one leg and go for itWeighted Step up with knee lift – almost becomes like cardio Single leg Calf extension – can be done flat or with any step you can find in the gymStraight leg dumbbell deadlift – Excellent for hams and you don’t necessarily need a lot of weightDonkey Kicks – build that bum

*FacelessFitness Pyramid Set Technique

Any time you find yourself at a lost because the weights are not big enough or if you just want to switch things up, use the FacelessFitness Pyramid set technique as follows

By the end of 2016, I have committed to completing 100000 repetitions in aid of suicide and self-harm support and prevention. Every single workout out rep will be posted to my Instagram account @FacelessFitGuy and any money raised will go directly to Pieta House.

In Ireland, like many other countries, suicide and self harm are still very much taboo subjects. Although great strides have been taken in recent years to break the stigma around mental health, it still exists and often the issues are not brought into focus until you or a family member is already suffering. Every single day people use professionals for advice on everyday things that are a part of life; problem with your car you go to a mechanic, problem with your physical health you go to a doctor, problem with pipes you call a plumber. The list goes on. when we have problems with things in every day life we get the advice of experts that can help, but what do we always do first? We talk to friends and family before we talk to any professional. For mental health this is most important. Never suffer alone!

Pieta House are an amazing organisation that provided support to over 5000 people and their families in 2015 alone. I am honoured to be involved as a volunteer with such a fantastic charity.

So please follow my journey on Instagram and donate as little or as much as possible to my everydayhero charity page below, all money raised goes directly to Pieta House.